Graduate School Update // Sept 2014

September 9, 2014

I think it’s finally time to give a graduate school update {click here for a little history about the subject.} I took a solid 3-4 weeks off of school after I finished my Ochem and Anatomy/Physiology classes in July (okay, so maybe it was more than 3-4 weeks.)

I ended the summer semester with an A in Ochem (!!!!) and a B in Anatomy/Physiology. Did I grit my teeth about that B? Oh, yes. But life goes on. My shock/happiness after receiving my Ochem grade made up for any disappointment I felt about my Anatomy/Physiology grade.

So what am I doing now? Unfortunately, not a whole lot. Hopefully this post will be the swift kick in the pants that I need to continue chugging along.

The next major milestone in this process will be submitting my applications. The majority of my applications are due on December 1, 2014. To prepare for that, there are a few things I am trying to accomplish in the next three months:

Get Experience

This is a big one, especially because a lot of graduate schools request that you have some experience under your belt before applying. This blog is a start, but I also need to find an opportunity that will give me more real-life experience. Without going through the list of dead ends that I ran into while looking for some experience, I’ll just sum it up by saying that it reached a point a few months ago when my only option seemed to be quitting my fulltime job to work as an (unpaid) intern.

The stress I felt just thinking about living without a steady paycheck was enough to eliminate the possibility. I decided that, no matter what, I would have to find a way to get experience while working fulltime. The most logical option was volunteering.

I researched volunteer opportunities but had little success at hospitals, WICs, and places like DC Central Kitchen. However, after an informational interview with a dietitian at USDA, she recommended that I contact Capital Area Food Bank.

I did some research and found the Cooking Matters program. The program provides cooking and nutritional education classes to low-income families in the Washington, DC metro area:

Cooking Matters is a national 6-week, hands-on nutrition and cooking educational series developed by Share Our Strength. It is offered through the Capital Area Food Bank to limited resource participants around the DC Metropolitan Area. Classes are taught by a team of volunteer nutrition instructors, culinary instructors and class assistants and cover basic nutrition, cooking meal planning, and shopping. The CAFB Healthy Eating Department is looking for volunteers passionate about engaging and encouraging participants to choose healthier foods for a healthier lifestyle.

Pretty awesome, right? I applied to help lead classes and I will hopefully know more information in the next few days.

RETAKE THE GRE

My GRE score the first time around was not stellar, but it wasn’t terrible. I used the Kaplan GRE Prep Book and spent about 6 weeks studying. Before taking the exam, I was averaging a fairly consistent score on the practice tests. Unfortunately on test day, I scored the lowest score of any of the practice exams I took previously.

I don’t do well on timed tests and while I take responsibility for my average score, I also don’t think the Kaplan prep book prepared me for the types of questions I would see on the test. For this second time around, I ordered the essential and advanced GRE vocab word flashcards and the ETS study guide. I plan on taking the exam for the second time in November.

Unfortunately, yes 🙁 I will be leaving DC once I get accepted into school. I did a lot of research into the programs in the DC/VA/MD area and I was either not qualified or not enthusiastic about my options. Sometimes we have to make tough decisions to pursue our dreams!

Okay, I think that’s enough of an update for now. Look for an October edition in a few weeks. Until then, let’s chat:

Has anyone else made a career switch? What were some of the challenges you faced?

Share:

About Lauren

Lauren Rice, MPH recently graduated from the Coordinated Dietetics Program at the University of Washington. In January 2017, she opened Nutrition Elevated, her anti-diet, #bodypositive nutrition counseling and consulting small business (www.nutrition-elevated.com).

Hello and welcome!

I'm LAUREN, and I started Just a Pinch in 2014 when I was applying to graduate school to become a registered dietitian nutritionist. In 2017, I started my own small business, Nutrition Elevated, LLC, to help share the breadth of knowledge I learned as a nutrition graduate student at the University of Washington in Seattle!